


Fine Print

by Ellynne



Series: Rumple's New Mirror [6]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Once Upon A Time - Fandom
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-05
Updated: 2017-10-05
Packaged: 2019-01-09 07:41:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 794
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12271944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellynne/pseuds/Ellynne
Summary: There were a few things Rumplestiltskin should have known before he agreed to take Harry.





	Fine Print

**Author's Note:**

> As far as I've been able to find out, what the solicitor tells Rumple about adoption law would have been correct in the UK in the early 80's.
> 
> Also, I am trying to knit a new baby Harry, but the results still look like a mutated acorn. I will try to post a picture if I ever get this to look right.

Rumplestiltskin wasn’t sure what made the words “guard him as if he were my own son” come out of his mouth.  Oh, he knew it was the winning argument, but that didn’t mean he had to _say_ it.  “Guard him as if he were someone I don’t want to see dead” (or a more tactfully phrased variation) might have done the trick and wouldn’t have been nearly as—as—Well, he shouldn’t be making promises like that, that’s all.

But, Belle had been looking at him.  He’d noticed Belle had been looking at him several times lately when he’d done something he later thought had been a completely mad idea.  Mad even for him.  Not that there was any reason why Belle looking at him should have anything to do with anything.  It was just . . . distracting.  Yes, that was it.  Having someone staring at him like that threw him off.  Especially someone with such blue, piercing eyes.  Honestly, how could anyone ignore it when eyes like that were looking right at them?  It was impossible.  No one could have done it. That was all there was to it.

And, now he thought about it, “guard him as if he were my own son” still left lots of wiggle room.  That was just a promise about keeping Harry _safe_ (a small voice in the back of his head pointed out that he’d done a pretty terrible job of guarding his own son, but he took that voice and stuffed it back in the black box in the back of his mind it had broken out of and slammed down the lid).  He hadn’t said anything about _treating_ him as if he were his own son or _keeping him in the castle_ as if he were his own son.  He most definitely hadn’t said _anything_ about—about—

“We’re going to adopt him, then?” Belle said as she walked alongside him, carrying baby Harry.

“W-w-what?” Rumple said.  “I didn’t—we aren’t—I never said anything about adopting him!”

“We’re taking him with us, aren’t we?” Belle said.  “And you said you had to do things properly by the laws in this world or it would cause trouble.”

Rumplestiltskin groaned.  The worst side effect of being the Dark One, he had to play by the rules.  Some of them.  Most of the time.  Not that rules couldn’t be folded and bent into some very interesting shapes.  But, still, when all was said and done, they were the rules. He couldn’t just wave his hands and make people think things had been done properly.  He had to actually _do_ them.  Properly.  With real forms, properly, legally filled out.

On the bright side. . . .  “There are always loopholes,” he said.

Belle’s face got that hard, determined look it did right before Rumple found himself agreeing to all sorts of insane schemes, like letting thieves go and handing out libraries.  He really needed to look into how that kept happening.

“This is a baby,” Belle said.  “Not a loophole.”

“Fine, fine,” Rumplestiltskin said. “We’ll adopt him.  Then, we’ll take him home to the Dark Castle, where we can see about somebody else adopting him.”

“Rumple. . . .”

“All right, all right, _you_ can adopt him.  We can set up a crib in the library.”

“ _Rumple._ ”

“I _promise,_ Belle—you have my word—I will do everything necessary to make sure you adopt him according to this world’s rules.” She continued giving him the look.  Rumplestiltskin sighed.  “And, if that means I adopt him, too, I will.  All right?”

Not long after—if there was one thing Rumplestiltskin knew how to do, it was getting directly to people in charge and convincing them they wanted to talk to him—Rumplestiltskin and Belle were seated in a very posh office getting forms filled out with a solicitor (solicitor struck Rumplestiltskin as a very strange title for a lawyer.  The only professionals he’d met before who used that name were a particular class of courtesans, but he supposed they had their reasons).

“Ah, yes,” the solicitor said. “We have nearly everything we need here.  But, you forgot your marriage license.”

“Our what?” Rumplestiltskin said.

“Marriage license.  We need it for the forms.  Only married couples get to adopt, you know.”

“Uh. . . .” Rumplestiltskin said.  “Uh. . . .”

He’d promised.  He’d made a deal.  There were rules he had to keep.  He thought over what he’d said to Belle, looking for a loophole.  What had his exact words been?  Oh, yes. 

_Everything necessary._

He looked helplessly at Belle, who didn’t seem to have quite understood what the solicitor was saying.  If she had, she wouldn’t have looked so calm and determined.

“Of course,” she said. “We’ll get that for you right away.”  She turned and looked at him.  “Won’t we, Rumple?”


End file.
